Staff Profile

Career Summary

Biography

A career in medical education has enabled Dr Horton to combine a keen interest in the scholarship of teaching and learning with continuing fulfilment from a wide range of roles in clinical medicine and preventative healthcare in regional and rural communities.

He trained in rural general practice in locations including Alice Springs, rural Tasmania and the Western Plains of NSW. An anaesthetics training post at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospitals, UK completed the requirements for a Fellowship in Advanced Rural General Practice. He has worked in remote communities of the Northern Territory as a District Medical Officer of the Aerial Medical Service, and now works in general practice in Newcastle.

Qualifications

Master of Environmental Studies, University of Newcastle, 11/12/2006

Graduate Diploma in Rural General Practice, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, 20/02/1998

Graduate Certificate in Population Health, University of Newcastle, 12/12/2005

Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, University of Sydney, 08/05/1992

Research

Research keywords

Peer review of teaching

climate change

e-portfolio

environmental education

Research expertise

Dr Horton is actively involved in medical education research and has presented on innovative methods of teaching and learning at the Association of Medical Education in Europe conference in 2008 and at the ANZAME conferences in 2009 and 2010.

He completed a Masters of Environmental Studies at the University of Newcastle in 2006 and as a member of the Management Committee of Doctors for the Environment, Australia co-authored the “Climate Change Health Check 2020 report for the Climate Institute in 2008, about which he presented at the 61st United Nations Department of Public Information/ NGO conference. His publications in peer-reviewed journals include a number of articles on the links between preventative health advice and environmental sustainability and on the health impacts of climate change.

Fields of Research

Code

Description

Percentage

110399

Clinical Sciences Not Elsewhere Classified

80

111705

Environmental And Occupational Health And Safety

20

Memberships

Body relevant to professional practice.

Member - Management Committee, Doctors for the Environment 2006-2010

Committee/Associations (relevant to research).

Member - Executive Committee of Australian Association of Academic General Practice 2006-2008

Collaboration

Dr Horton has collaborated with colleagues at the University of New England in a number of projects in medical education research including peer review of teaching and the use of eportfolios in higher education. He is completing a PhD on the attitudes of Australian medical students to the incorporation of the topic of climate change health impacts in the medical school curriculum with supervisors from the University of Newcastle and the University of Melbourne. This project is an activity of the Adaptation Research Network of the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility.

Administrative

Administrative expertise

Since first joining the University of Newcastle as a Rural Undergraduate Support and Coordination academic in 2005, Dr Horton's roles in the medical program have included Chair of the Rural Implementation Committee in 2008, Coordinator for the Year 3 Professional Practice course from 2006 to 2008. and Year 3 Chair of the Joint Medical Program of the University of Newcastle and the University of New England in 2009 and 2010. He was Discipline Lead in Medical Education 2010 to mid- 2012 and since 2011 has been Program Convenor for the Bachelor of Medicine.

Teaching

Teaching keywords

e-learning

environmental health

medical education

problem-based learning

Teaching expertise

Since 2006 Dr Horton has been involved in professional development of problem-based learning tutors and for written assessment writing. He is the Joint Medical Programs representative on the Consortium Policy Committee of the International Database for Enhanced Assessments and Learning (IDEAL) Consortium.

He chairs the medical programs Written Assessment Committee and has been a regular participant at item writing workshops for the Australian Medical Council examinations.